Is Microsoft dumb enough to keep the Apollo update from current Windows Phones?

After recovering from a minor PR bomb caused by the “Smoked by Windows Phone” campaign — and a data glitch that forced Nokia to offer full refunds on the Lumia 900 — Microsoft may once again be in hot water. This time it’s about the company’s Windows Phone OS upgrade strategy.

Word is that current Windows Phones won’t be upgradeable to Windows Phone 8, a massive update that’s currently being called “Apollo”, reports the Verge. ZDNet’s Microsoft guru Mary Jo Foley has heard similar information from her sources as well.

The Verge’s report came in response to an earlier news item from Microsoft developer evangelist Nuno Silva yesterday. He claimed that all Windows Phones would be upgradeable to Apollo, but now it seems like that’s completely false.

I certainly didn’t expect Windows Phone models from the platform’s launch to be upgradeable to Apollo, as their hardware was lackluster even when they debuted. But it seems crazy for Microsoft to cut newer devices from the upgrade cycle, especially its new flagship the Lumia 900. The consumers that are currently buying the more recent Windows Phone devices are precious early adopters, and the company needs to make sure it doesn’t piss them off. Such a move also won’t endear Microsoft to the techie crowd.

On the other hand, if Windows Phone 8 is actually a big enough update that current phones can’t handle it, then it may also end up being a huge leap forward for the platform. But even if that were the case, I don’t think it’s worth the ill will Microsoft will see from burned Windows Phone owners.